Uncertainties
by Shadow 3013
Summary: Heero, Duo, and WuFei begin to realize that they have certain feelings for each other, and must cope with this new realization. Will they confront the situation, or let it go unsaid? 1X2X5 and 4X3/3X4 shonen-ai/yaoi/slash
1. Author's Notes

Standard stuff first: Gundam Wing and its characters do not belong to me. They are the property of their creators, and Sunrise/Arashi/whatever the company that owns them is called. I don't claim to own them. I'm just borrowing them for a bit. Please don't sue; like most fanfic authors, I'm poor, and you won't be able to get much. Just some chocolate and a jar of maraschino cherries, if you're lucky.  
  
Now… This is another fic that wasn't intended to be read in chapters. I'm not writing it that way; I'm just posting it in chapters to make it easier. I'll do my best to split things up nicely; if you have a suggestion for changing where I split, just tell me and I'll change it if I like the idea. Oh yeah… Uncertainties is just the working title; I may change it later. If you have any ideas for a better title, just post them in your review or email me with them (make sure you mention 'fanfic' or something like that in the subject).  
  
Ah… This is my first ever 1X2X5 (or however you'd like to mix the order; I'm not exactly sure how this particular fic would have the boys arranged, so I'm just leaving it in numerical order) fic, so please be gentle when reviewing. There is (obviously) going to be 3X4/4X3 here as well. If you don't like shonen-ai (or yaoi, if you call it that, though this isn't graphic enough to be categorized as such), then don't bother reading this. You probably won't like it. Also, I realize that the boys are slightly OOC, especially Heero and WuFei, and perhaps Trowa… But I personally think that not even those three can be completely serious all the time, you know? Besides, love can make you act strangely, compared to how you usually act, so that explains it. :::smiles:::  
  
Okay. That's all I can think of, so… On with the story! And remember; the more reviews I get, the faster I'll add on. Separate reviews for each chapter are always appreciated. :::grins::: Thanks, and enjoy! 


	2. Chapter One

Heero had just arrived back from his latest mission; it had been a success. Enemy OZ base: destroyed. Leader of that base, who had somehow survived the attack: assassinated. All obstacles eliminated. Mission accomplished. Ninmu kanryou. And now, after all that, all the Japanese pilot wanted was to rest.  
  
Heero found himself limping slowly towards his room, carefully avoiding furthering his injuries. He noticed that he was leaving behind a trail of blood drops on the until-then stainless ivory colored carpet. He winced ever so slightly; Quatre and his multitude of servants wouldn't be too happy about that...  
  
After a minute that felt more like an eternity, the Wing pilot finally reached his bedroom. Breathing an almost silent sigh of relief, he opened the door. The sight that met him was a heavy blow to his overtired heart and mind.  
  
WuFei was laying on the bed, sleeping, a book on his lap. Duo was asleep next to him, slumped against the headboard.  
  
Heero tried to suppress the surges of jealousy and anger that hit him. Looking at the book he noticed that the writing was entirely in Chinese; WuFei had been reading to Duo again, apparently. Nothing new there; Duo was, perhaps strangely, fascinated by the Chinese language, and often begged WuFei to read to him in his native language. Occasionally the dark haired boy would give in and do so.  
  
Heero considered waking WuFei and telling him to return to his own room, but he was just too tired. Right now, he wouldn't have cared if Relena herself was in the bed, he was so exhausted. And that was saying a lot.  
  
Sighing under his breath, Heero shrugged and collapsed onto the bed next to WuFei, gratefully letting himself slip into slumber.  
  
* * *  
  
Duo awoke slowly, several of his muscles aching. He was half-laying, half-sitting in what was a highly uncomfortable position to sleep in. He stretched slowly as he took in his surroundings, then blinked. Sleeping next to him was WuFei, his hair worked halfway out of its pigtail. Laying next to him was Heero, dried blood and a half-closed wound on one of his legs.  
  
"God, I'm in heaven..." Duo thought to himself, rubbing his eyes as he stared at the resting boys. "I just wish I could see how WuFei would react if he could see this the way I do."  
  
An idea began to form in the American's mind, and he quickly worked to put it into action. Taking care to not wake up either of his two sleeping companions, he quietly opened the drawer of the night table next to the bed. After rummaging around for a few moments, he found what he was looking for.  
  
"Ha! I knew I had a camera somewhere!" he crowed to himself silently, turning back to the bed. "Heh heh heh... Now I've got blackmail against them, just in case." He continued to himself, snapping three pictures quickly. "But until I do need it... They're back into the drawer." He declared. With his mind made up about that matter, Duo took a look at the instant photos to see if they were developed yet.  
  
"Kawaii...!" he crooned, staring at his prizes. They were perfect! "And now, to make the best of this situation..." He ran over to the dresser and buried the photos beneath his clothes, then went back to the bed. He critically surveyed the amount of room between WuFei and Heero.  
  
"Should be just enough room..." he mused. Shrugging, he squirmed his way between them and soon drifted off to sleep, a blissful, satisfied smile on his face.  
  
* * *  
  
"And the brave warrior slew the evil monster and returned home in glory." WuFei whispered drowsily, slipping away from the clutches of sleep.  
  
As the Chinese boy became more alert, he realized that he wasn't in his room. He could remember reading a book to Duo; perhaps he had fallen asleep while reading. After all, it wouldn't have been the first time for that to happen. But if that was the case, then where was Duo? The braided boy had been on his left side when he had drifted off, but now there was nobody there, so...  
  
WuFei could feel something warm against his back and turned to see what it was.  
  
He wasn't surprised to find that Duo was asleep, but he was surprised to see another figure on the bed next to him. WuFei didn't even need to take a closer look to see that it was Heero.  
  
"I'm surprised that he's sleeping with me still in the room. I'm surprised that I'm still breathing! He must have been incredibly tired to just let his guard down and go to sleep like that." WuFei thought to himself. "His mission must have been an especially intense and difficult one this time, then."  
  
He truly felt sorry for the Japanese pilot sometimes. "At least I've known love before, even if I only loved Meiran as a sister; I highly doubt that Heero even knows just what he's feeling for Duo. If he's even letting himself feel anything, that is."  
  
WuFei shook his head then, chuckling softly at the next thought that popped into his mind. "Well, I'm sure that Duo will be able to work around that; he's not just stubborn, he can actually be fairly resourceful and intelligent at times. When he desires to be, that is!"  
  
WuFei contemplated getting up and returning to his own bedroom, but he didn't want to risk waking Duo and Heero; Duo was miserable to be around until he was fully awake, and he could tell that Heero needed as much rest as he could get. Instead, the Chinese pilot picked up the book laying on his lap, opened it, and quietly resumed reading where he had left off earlier. 


	3. Chapter Two

Heero woke up with a start as he heard the bedroom door swing open. He opened his eyes and was met by the sight of a blushing Quatre.  
  
"Oh, I'm... sorry... I didn't mean to interrupt! Uhhm... Breakfast is done when you're ready to eat..." the Arabian pilot stammered, looking terribly uncomfortable all of a sudden. He bowed and quickly left the room.  
  
Heero heard a sound coming from the other side of Duo. He looked over and found WuFei reading his book and chuckling.  
  
"Poor Quatre." The Chinese boy laughed, shaking his head.  
  
"What did he think was going on in here?" Heero asked his friend, raising one eyebrow.  
  
"You probably wouldn't want to know." WuFei replied.  
  
"Why not?" Heero looked confused.  
  
A few drops of blood dripped out of the Chinese boy's nose.  
  
Duo stirred between them, then sat up. "I was trying to sleep, but you two have succeeded in making that impossible! Anyway, I heard your question, Heero, and I've got a better answer than ol' Wu-Bear."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Eh, he just thought that we were screwing around. Literally." He explained cheerfully, pulling on his braid.  
  
Blood came gushing out of WuFei's nose in a steady flow. Duo stared at him and laughed loudly.  
  
"Aww, poor Wuffie!" the American crooned sarcastically, leaning forward a little so that he was only a few inches away from the panicking Chinese boy. "You don't like me talking about stuff like that?"  
  
"Shut up, Maxwell!" He shouted, wiping the blood off his face.  
  
"I don't understand." Heero said softly, looking even more confused than before. Duo laughed even harder.  
  
"Don't worry about it, Hee-chan." He finally managed to gasp. Heero looked inquisitively at WuFei, who nodded vigorously in agreement, causing drops of blood to fly through the air.  
  
Heero shrugged slightly and stretched, closing his eyes. Duo cuddled up next to him, purring. WuFei continued to read, but this time out loud, though very quietly. It really was altogether quite relaxing for everyone in the room.  
  
That's when it hit Heero. Before now, he had never let down his guard around anyone but Duo, not even any of the other Gundam pilots, and he had just lowered it in front of WuFei. He was even more surprised that he was unbothered by that fact.  
  
"What's wrong with me? Why am I letting my guard down with him here?" he asked himself. The question was completely rhetorical, so he didn't bother to give himself an answer.  
  
Heero found himself slowly drifting back to sleep, lulled by Duo's warmth and steady breathing, as well WuFei's melodic voice. He was definitely getting the much-needed rest that he had been hoping for.  
  
* * *  
  
After a while, WuFei noticed that Duo and Heero had both fallen asleep again. He smiled and closed his book, his voice going quiet. Apparently Heero didn't much mind his being in the room.  
  
The Japanese boy stirred restlessly in his sleep as WuFei stopped reading. WuFei frowned and began talking in Chinese; Heero settled back into a more peaceful slumber.  
  
"Ahh. Interesting." the Chinese pilot thought to himself. He stopped talking; Heero stirred again. His suspicions were confirmed. Having thus realized the problem, WuFei settled into a comfortable position and, with a slight smile and an almost silent sigh, he began to talk again, reciting every poem and story that he could think of.  
  
An hour later found WuFei with his throat quickly getting sore and his supply of poems and stories quickly dwindling. He stopped again experimentally; Heero's response was the same as earlier.  
  
WuFei groaned quietly, hitting his head with his hand. Now what was he going to do? He knew that he would feel guilty if he just let Heero lose sleep, but what else could he do? If he kept this up for much longer, he would lose his voice!  
  
Not knowing what else to do, the Chinese pilot turned and, still reciting a poem, shook Duo awake gently. The American blinked once or twice, then was fully awake and alert.  
  
"What's wrong?" the braided boy asked, looking around. WuFei continued with his poem and pointed at Heero. Duo cocked his head to one side, looking confused. WuFei stopped talking for a moment, causing Heero to frown slightly and toss his head. As soon as he was sure that Duo had seen the reaction, he resumed talking.  
  
The American's eyes widened in understanding. "Oh, I'm sorry, he must be having nightmares again." He said apologetically. "He gets restless like this when he does." Here Duo paused and raised an eyebrow, looking curious. "Just how long has he been like this? A few minutes?"  
  
WuFei shook his head and held up one finger.  
  
"An hour?" Duo asked incredulously, his jaw dropping down as he stared in half-respect, half-disbelief. The Chinese boy nodded.  
  
"Wow..." the braided boy said shortly. He was shocked. "That's a long time. Why didn't you just wake him up?"  
  
WuFei smiled warmly and shook his head, pointing at Heero again. Duo turned to look at the sleeping boy and immediately understood what his friend meant.  
  
Heero looked completely peaceful when he was asleep. All traces of The Perfect Soldier disappeared, except for the fact that his features were sleek and strong. Adding to the beauty was a slight smile on his face, something Duo didn't see all that often and WuFei had never seen before.  
  
"Oh... Okay. I'll tell ya what. I'll take over for an hour or so, then we'll switch; if we do that, we should both survive with our voices more or less intact." Duo suggested. WuFei nodded his thanks and stopped talking, grateful for the chance to rest his weary vocal chords.  
  
"Should I go get breakfast?" he inquired as Duo cleared his throat.  
  
"More like lunch by now, but that's a great idea. I'm starved!"  
  
WuFei grinned. "When are you not feeling that way?" he asked jokingly, getting off the bed. Duo looked hurt, but then an evil grin appeared on his face.  
  
"Actually, I'm never hungry when Heero and I are-"  
  
"Maxwell!"  
  
"What, what? I was just going to say talking!"  
  
"You actually talk? You have actual conversations? With both of you speaking?"  
  
Duo grinned. "Yeah. Not that often, but it happens occasionally. Scary, isn't it?"  
  
"Indeed, it is... I'll return with food soon." He opened the door.  
  
"Okay." Duo replied. "Oh yeah... Thanks, by the way."  
  
"There's no need to thank me; I'm hungry as well, after all."  
  
"I'm not saying that just about the food, WuFei. What I mean to say is... Thanks for everything."  
  
The door closed and Duo began to sing quietly, his husky alto voice caressing the notes tenderly. Heero slept on, perfectly content. 


	4. Chapter Three

"Good afternoon, WuFei!" Quatre greeted the Chinese pilot cheerfully as he entered the kitchen. "We already ate breakfast, but I'm almost done preparing lunch, if you don't mind the wait!"  
  
"Not at all. Thank you, Quatre." He looked over Quatre's shoulder, peering at the food, and frowned. "Are you certain that's enough food?"  
  
"Don't worry; it's more than enough to feed all of us, including a half-starving Duo!" the Arabian pilot replied.  
  
WuFei sat down at the kitchen table to wait. "That's good. Especially seeing as, according to Maxwell himself, you're going to be feeding a starving Duo."  
  
"Oh, you've talked to him? I thought he was asleep!" the blonde asked, looking a bit confused.  
  
"He's awake. He has been for a short while."  
  
"Is he coming downstairs soon?"  
  
"No, he's with Heero right now. I'm going to bring food to them."  
  
"Oh. All right." Quatre replied. It looked as if he were fighting off an impending blush. He opened a cabinet and pulled out a tray, which he placed two plates of sandwiches and cookies; the cookies had been homemade and were fresh out of the oven. The Arabian fixed a third plate, picked it up, then froze; he was obviously unsure of what to do with WuFei's meal. "Ah, WuFei," he began.  
  
The other boy didn't need to hear the rest of the question to know what was going to be asked. "I'll be eating with them; go ahead and put mine on the tray, please." He said, standing and walking over to Quatre. The blonde added the third plate, then handed the tray to WuFei.  
  
"Thank you, Quatre." The Shenlong pilot thanked his friend, bowing and taking the proffered tray. With that, he headed back to the bedroom.  
  
WuFei balanced the tray on one hand and opened the door, gently kicking it shut behind him. He gingerly set the tray down on the dresser and picked up one of the plates, then walked over to the bed.  
  
Duo looked up at him as he sat down on the bed. The American was singing an old-fashioned song about a dying fisherman. His eyes lit up at the sight of the food.  
  
WuFei smiled. "Would you like to eat first? I'll take over while you do." He offered. Duo nodded eagerly, but looked slightly worried. "Don't worry," WuFei added, "I'll be fine. I know you don't take long to eat, Maxwell, especially not when you're hungry!" He chuckled. Duo held out his hands; WuFei handed him the plate. The American waited for WuFei to begin talking, then began to stuff the food into his mouth hungrily. WuFei rolled his eyes.  
  
After he had recited half the tale of Mulan in Chinese, WuFei looked over at Duo and found him lifting the last cookie on the plate to his mouth. The Chinese pilot grew suspicious at the unusually long amount of time it had taken Duo to finish his lunch. He grabbed his friend's wrist, preventing him from eating the cookie, and stood up.  
  
Looking over at the dresser, WuFei saw that there was only one plate with food left; just as he had suspected, Duo had eaten more than just his own meal! He turned to his friend, a disapproving scowl the prominent feature on his face.  
  
Duo hid his face behind a plate, looking innocent. "Ahh... Gomen ne, Wu-chan... I was hungry..." he sniffled, tears welling up in his eyes as he lowered the plate. He put on his best sad-puppy-dog face and blinked cutely. WuFei sighed; it was impossible to stay angry with Duo when he got like that! He was simply too adorable for his own, or anyone else's, good!  
  
As WuFei's grip on his friend's wrist loosened, Duo saw his chance to escape. He jerked his hand free, stuffed the cookie into a surprised WuFei's mouth, and began to sing softly once more. The look on his face challenged WuFei; he knew that he wouldn't be challenged, if only for Heero's sake.  
  
The Chinese pilot laughed, cookie crumbs spraying from his mouth. "All right, Maxwell," he began, chewing and swallowing the rest of the cookie. "I'll forgive you... But just this once. I'm going downstairs to see if Quatre has prepared any extra food. Don't you dare touch that plate while I'm gone!"  
  
Duo saluted him, and WuFei left the room. The moment he was gone, Duo stopped singing just long enough to make a dreadful face at him.  
  
* * *  
  
When WuFei entered the kitchen, he was immediately greeted once again by a smiling Quatre and a stoic-as-ever Trowa. They were sitting next to each other at the table, slowly eating their food. Neither of them were talking; they seemed to be content with simply being in each other's presence.  
  
"Oh, hello WuFei! Did you need something else?" the blonde boy asked, looking up.  
  
"I was wondering if there was any food left; Duo, predictably enough, ate mine as well as his own." the black eyed pilot replied.  
  
"Of course there is!" Quatre replied, standing and scurrying over to the counter. He placed a sandwich on a paper towel, then went over to the oven. Putting on an oven mitt he reached inside and pulled out a tray of cookies.  
  
"Well, I'm fairly sure that they're done by now..." he mused under his breath, looking at them critically. He used a spatula to place several of them onto another paper towel, then handed both paper towels to WuFei. "There you go!"  
  
"Thank you." WuFei said, bowing. Nodding to Trowa, he left the room.  
  
"Hmm. He certainly seems to be getting along well with Duo and Heero lately, doesn't he?" Quatre observed once he judged that his friend was out of hearing distance. Trowa nodded.  
  
"He's happy." the long-banged pilot commented, taking another bite of his sandwich.  
  
"Yes, he is. That's good; he deserves to be happy."  
  
"And Duo?"  
  
"I'm not sure... He's always happy when Heero's around, of course, but lately he's gotten that look when WuFei is nearby as well."  
  
"And when he's with both..." Trowa began.  
  
"He's walking on air!" Quatre finished. The two boys laughed quietly.  
  
"I pray to Allah that everything turns out well for them, regardless of what happens." Quatre smiled.  
  
Trowa nodded, pulling Quatre onto his lap as the blonde walked back to the table.  
  
"Don't worry, I'm certain that things will be fine." he said reassuringly, hugging the Sandrock pilot close.  
  
"I hope so, Trowa. I really do hope so." Quatre sighed. Trowa kissed him gently on the cheek, and the little Arabian stopped worrying about things, at least for a while. 


	5. Chapter Four

WuFei sat down just outside the bedroom door, balancing his food on one outstretched leg as he slowly munched on a cookie. It would be obvious to anyone who passed by that he was in deep thought.  
  
He had overheard the conversation between Trowa and Quatre, and it had him slightly confused and extremely curious. He knew that their comments on Duo's behavior near Heero were true without a doubt, but what about the rest of what they had said? WuFei knew that he wouldn't necessarily notice such a reaction on Duo's part, but why would the American pilot be interested? He had Heero, after all!  
  
That simple statement brought up an entirely new flurry of uncomfortable thoughts. It had him truly surprised that Heero had lowered his guard enough to sleep that deeply in his presence. In fact, he actually felt quite honored.  
  
Before the Chinese boy could follow his train of thought any further, the bedroom door opened slightly and Duo poked his head out.  
  
"What's taking ya so long, Wuffie?" he asked. His smile widened. "Hey, cookies! You've gotta share the wealth, man!" he exclaimed happily, pouncing onto WuFei and grabbing one of the sweet treats.  
  
"Where's Heero?" the dark haired pilot asked his friend.  
  
"Eating." Duo replied, pointing back into the bedroom. "Come on, come on! You have cookies, and he might want one too!"  
  
"Fine, Maxwell, fine." WuFei handed the cookies to Duo and stood up gracefully, brushing off any non-existent crumbs from his legs and hands. Then, stretching slowly, he followed Duo into the room.  
  
Heero was seated cross-legged on the bed, slowly eating his sandwich. His face lit up as Duo entered the room and sat next to him; he merely nodded slightly to WuFei as he closed the door behind himself.  
  
WuFei hesitated momentarily, unsure of what to do with himself. Duo saw the look on his face and grinned. "Come sit." He said, patting the bed.  
  
"Did you sleep well, Yuy?" the Chinese pilot asked as he folded his legs under himself and sat behind Heero.  
  
The Japanese boy nodded. "Yes... thank you." he replied. Finishing his sandwich, he reached for the cookie on his plate; Duo got to it first.  
  
The cookie was halfway into Duo's mouth when Heero quickly leaned forward and took the other half into his own mouth. Duo's eyes widened as WuFei stared, on the verge of laughing. The Chinese boy almost fainted as Heero distinctly winked at him over Duo's shoulder.  
  
"That wasn't fair, Hee-chan!" the American boy pouted, crossing his arms in front of him and thrusting out his bottom lip. WuFei couldn't help it; he began to snicker softly. The expression on Duo's face was absolutely priceless...  
  
Duo whipped around to face WuFei and stuck out his tongue. "Shut up, Chink! Shut up! Whose side are you on, anyway?!?!?" he demanded.  
  
"Heero's." WuFei deadpanned.  
  
A frustrated... well, shriek, erupted from Duo's mouth as he balled up his fists and glared at the two other boys. WuFei was laughing rather loudly by now, and Heero was actually smirking.  
  
Duo stared in shock at this. Heero was actually smirking in front of someone? And WuFei, no less! He began laughing despite himself as he realized that he was outnumbered this time. He certainly hadn't expected that!  
  
"No fair ganging up on me like that, guys!" he whined, punching each of them playfully.  
  
"I accomplish my goal no matter what." WuFei replied, looking serious.  
  
"Ninmu kanryou. By whatever means necessary." Heero added, once more putting on his emotionless mask.  
  
Duo pouted, then grew thoughtful. "Wait a second... What is the mission, anyway?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.  
  
WuFei frowned slightly, his mind racing. Just exactly what was the mission this time? He really wasn't sure... Fortunately, he didn't have to come up with an answer; Heero got to it first.  
  
"Hn. Objectives: Get Duo Maxwell to shut up for five minutes. Prevent the American from eating the house's entire supply of food." the Japanese boy announced, his face blank.  
  
WuFei burst out laughing again; he'd never heard Heero make a joke in his entire time of knowing him! The look on Duo's face made him laugh even harder. He fell back on the bed, mirthful tears streaming down his cheeks. Soon Duo started to laugh as well; the emotion was contagious, apparently.  
  
As the two boys finally calmed down, they were quite surprised to see Heero's back shaking. A muffled, almost choking sound emerged from his mouth. It took a few seconds, but it finally struck WuFei that he was trying to keep himself from laughing.  
  
WuFei's jaw dropped down as he stared at Heero wide-eyed. He managed to tear his gaze away for a split-second to look at Duo; his reaction was almost identical to his own.  
  
After a few moments, Heero stilled and quieted, looking up. His eyes were shining with laughter, a grin wide enough to rival even one of Duo's plastered on his face. The stunned looks on Duo and WuFei's faces were enough to make him start chuckling again.  
  
"You're... laughing!" WuFei stammered disbelievingly. Heero's grin widened. The Chinese pilot turned to Duo. "Does he get like this often?" he asked.  
  
"Usually just when he's drunk. Reeeaally drunk." Duo replied, looking a bit confused. "You haven't been hitting my supply of Cherry Puckers again, have you?" His gaze drifted temporarily to his closet, then went back to the Japanese boy.  
  
Heero shook his head. "No, no, not after what you did to me last time I did that."  
  
Duo winced. "Oh, come on... I've already apologized for that. I mean, how was I supposed to know that your skin is so sensitive to alcohol?"  
  
WuFei stared and looked completely lost. "I... don't want to know... do I?" he asked weakly.  
  
Duo grinned predatorily. "Oh, I don't know..." he drawled, leaning forward. "You might..." He was leering now. WuFei squirmed uncomfortably. Heero surprised him again by coming to his rescue.  
  
"Duo," Heero said warningly, doing his best to scowl through his grin. "You shouldn't tease WuFei like that."  
  
"Why not? It's fun!" Duo protested.  
  
The war between scowl and grin came to a compromise as a smirk appeared on the Japanese boy's face. "Because... He'll get a nosebleed. You don't want to risk having him bleed to death, do you? Especially not on the bed." So much for `rescue'.  
  
WuFei glared at his friends, both of whom were busy laughing their heads off. He eventually relented and joined in as well.  
  
A knock sounded at the bedroom door. "Guys?" a hesitant voice said.  
  
"Come in!" Duo managed to gasp, rolling around on the bed, trying to control himself.  
  
The door opened to reveal a wary-looking Quatre. "By Allah..." he breathed, staring in shock.  
  
"What's wrong?" came a second voice as Trowa poked his head into the room. "Oh. What the f*ck's going on in here?" Leave it to Trowa to be blunt; he didn't speak all that often, but when he did, he certainly didn't hide his meaning behind his words.  
  
"It's their fault!" Heero, Duo, and WuFei exclaimed in unison, each one pointing at the other two. They collapsed into a pile of laughing hair, skin, and clothing. And, considering who they were, probably hidden weapons as well.  
  
"Uhhm... Are you three... okay?" Quatre asked slowly, looking as though he was going to bolt out the door at any second.  
  
"Yeah, man, I'm great!" Duo crowed enthusiastically, grinning widely and still struggling to control his laughter.  
  
"Indeed, everything is fine." WuFei agreed, nodding seriously.  
  
Heero giggled. Trowa turned slightly to stare at him. "Heero, did you get into Duo's alcohol stash?" he asked. Heero shook his head. "WuFei's opium?" Heero shook his head again.  
  
"How'd you know about my stash?" Duo and WuFei shouted in unison, jumping off the bed and taking a step towards the door. Heero reached out just as quickly and pulled them back onto the bed.  
  
"Run, Trowa, run!" Heero called jokingly. Trowa and Quatre blinked stupidly as WuFei and Duo struggled to get away; Heero's grasp didn't falter even the slightest bit. "Where do the two of you think you're going?" he asked the squirming boys.  
  
"Y-y-y... Yuy! What are you doing?!? Let go of me!!!" WuFei roared indignantly. "Injustice! Dishonor!"  
  
"Hn." Heero smirked.  
  
"Maxwell? Some help here?" The Chinese pilot practically begged.  
  
"Don't do it." Heero warned.  
  
"Why not?" WuFei and Duo questioned at once.  
  
"If you do, then I'll cut your braid off!"  
  
"You wouldn't!" Duo gasped, a shocked look on his face.  
  
"I don't know, Duo... Look at the way he's acting..." Quatre said warningly, frowning slightly. He looked utterly adorable.  
  
"Good point, Q-Man... Sorry, Wuffie, no can do!"  
  
"We're going to the store. Need anything?" Trowa asked.  
  
"Ice-cream, chocolate, coffee, sugary cereal, whipped cream, and chips!" Duo shouted, looking excited at the prospect of finally getting some junk food into the house. WuFei had been the one to stock food for the last safe house, and they had ended up having to live off of mostly-disgusting health foods.  
  
"And tranquilizers. Very strong tranquilizers!" WuFei moaned.  
  
"I'm not sure If we can get our hands on tranquilizers, WuFei, but we'll try!" Quatre beamed. "Heero?"  
  
"No, nothing else... Only, make sure that you get chocolate chip cookie dough ice-cream."  
  
Quatre smiled and nodded; Trowa's visible eyebrow quirked ever so slightly, but, of course, he remained silent.  
  
"All right. We'll be back soon." The Arabian pilot said, bowing and leaving the room. Trowa followed his friend, but not before taking one long, last look at the three other pilots and shaking his head.  
  
Heero, WuFei, and Duo immediately erupted into giggles again as soon as their comrades had left. It took several minutes for them to finally calm down enough to actually talk again, but once they had, it was WuFei who spoke first.  
  
"Yuy, I'm not exactly complaining about the change, but why are you suddenly acting like this?" he asked, shifting his position so that he was sitting cross-legged. Duo also made himself more comfortable and flipped over so that he was lying stomach-down on the bed, looking up at Heero's face.  
  
Heero frowned slightly, his eyebrows furrowing. "I'm not quite certain..." he began slowly. "I just woke up and felt... Happy."  
  
Duo smiled and moved a few inches closer to Heero, resting his head on the other boy's lap. "Well, that's a good enough explanation for me." he stated, looking quite happy. WuFei nodded his agreement.  
  
For several minutes, the room was actually quiet. No giggling fits or justice rants or clacking computer keys. Just silence. All three young men found the silence to be rather nice, even Duo, which said a lot.  
  
Then again, with Duo in the room, silence can never last too long. "Oi... I haven't had a day this good in forever." he proclaimed happily.  
  
"Neither have I." WuFei agreed. "In fact, I haven't had a day where I've been this happy ever since..."  
  
Duo looked up, curious. The look in WuFei's eyes worried him a little. "Since when?" he asked after a few seconds had passed and the statement still hadn't been completed.  
  
"Ever since Meiran died." The light hit the Chinese pilot's eyes just then and bounced off the tears that were beginning to form. WuFei quickly blinked, ridding himself of the accursed tell-tale signs of sorrow.  
  
"Sorry." Duo whispered, regretting the fact that he had asked.  
  
"It's okay." the black haired young man shrugged.  
  
The silence came back; not quite as pleasant as before, but still nice enough. Peaceful. Duo's eyes fluttered slowly shut, and his breathing took on a slow, steady rhythm. Despite his best efforts not to, WuFei fell asleep not long after the braided boy. His upper body soon slumped forward in a display of horrible posture that would never have occurred had he been awake to control himself.  
  
"His back will cramp if he stays that way for very long." Heero thought to himself, eyeing the black-haired boy critically. He reached out with one hand and gently pulled the Chinese boy towards him so that he was leaning up against his shoulder. "That should be more comfortable. I only hope he won't mind when he wakes up; I'm in too good a mood to listen to another rant about `dishonor' and `injustice'."  
  
Having done his best to make his companion comfortable without accidentally waking him up, Heero leaned back against the headboard and let himself fall asleep as well. After a long, hard mission like the one he had so recently finished, there was no such thing as too much sleep. 


	6. Chapter Five

That night, pilots 01, 02, 04, and 05 were given a new joint mission, thus leaving Trowa behind to move all of their belongings to the next safe- house.  
  
The mission was, as Duo so fondly dubbed it, a "shoot-em-up." A contact had passed on a rumor of a new prototype mobile suit being tested at a small military base. The Gundam pilots had been charged with the task of finding the base and destroying it, as well as destroying the rumored mobile suits, if they truly existed.  
  
When the four young men arrived at their destination, they were greeted by a sleeping base.  
  
"Heero, behind you!" Quatre shouted suddenly, his voice blasting through the comlinks of the four Gundams.  
  
"Heero!" echoed WuFei and Duo. There was an identical quality in their voices, a desperate cry pleading simply for the safety of their comrade.  
  
A deep blue mobile suit of a make none of the Gundam pilots had ever seen before was hovering in the air slightly above Wing, its gun aimed at the head of Gundam 01. At the same time the unknown suit launched a blast from its weapon, Heero struck backwards with one arm. Luckily, he managed to jar the aim of the other suit's attack, and avoided any major injuries to his own mobile suit.  
  
Before the enemy pilot could attack again, a thermal scythe struck out and sliced the mech in half, ending the threat. Duo smiled darkly, his eyes narrowing. "Let's get 'em."  
  
The four pilots headed closer to the base and began in earnest their mission. It was time for a little revenge.  
  
* * *  
  
"Ninmu kanryou." Heero said softly, staring down at the smoking rubble that had, only a short time ago, been an OZ base. His face was blank, but his eyes shone with satisfaction.  
  
"Is everyone okay?" Quatre asked his companions. His concerned face flashed onto their screens.  
  
"Never been better, Q. Kicking some OZ butt always makes me feel good, somehow." Duo half-growled, the cheerful smile on his face almost scary.  
  
"I'm fine. Those weaklings weren't much of a challenge, with the exception of that first one." WuFei replied.  
  
"I've sustained only minimal damage." Heero said, his tone flat. "It's time we head to the safe house Trowa prepared today."  
  
Affirmative responses came from the other three pilots, and they all headed off to said location. 


	7. Chapter Six

Trowa was waiting just inside the building when his fellow pilots arrived at the safe-house after hiding their Gundams. Just from observing their postures as they headed towards the house let him know that the mission had been a success, but there was something slightly strange about WuFei's actions. He seemed to be deliberately distancing himself from the others…  
  
Trowa opened the door the moment Heero reached the front porch. The Japanese pilot nodded and made one simple statement: "Success." With that said, he cast a sweeping glance around the room, as though looking for something.  
  
"Through the living room, into the dining room. Take a left through the den, in the room near the back door." Trowa said, knowing what the dark haired pilot was looking for.  
  
Heero nodded again, though the gesture was extremely slight, then began walking off, following the directions he'd just been given.  
  
Duo walked in next, complete with the usual spring in his step. His cheerful smile was still on his face, but it still seemed to Trowa that something was missing. He didn't bother putting much thought into it, however; if it interfered with things, Heero would take care of it, and if it didn't cause any problems to the mission, then Quatre would fix things in time. Nothing for him to worry about there; he'd be better off devoting his thoughts to other matters.  
  
Several moments passed in silence as Trowa waited patiently for another of his companions to enter the house, but neither of them did. Curious, he stuck his head out the door to see what was going on. WuFei and Quatre were squared off in the center of what would normally be called a 'front yard', and it seemed as though they were arguing over something.  
  
At first, not even Trowa's keen hearing could pick up the hushed whispers, but WuFei soon increased his volume.  
  
"Nothing is bothering me, Winner. I'm fine, so stay to your own business!" the Chinese pilot said, glaring at his fair-haired companion.  
  
"WuFei, why are you lying to me? I can tell that you're ill at ease. Something is disturbing your thoughts. Please tell me? You know that I won't repeat anything you say!" Quatre pleaded, clasping his hands together and staring into WuFei's eyes.  
  
WuFei stared at Quatre for a few seconds, then turned and headed quickly away from him, towards the surrounding woods. Quatre looked as though he wanted to go after him, but the blonde knew better. Instead, he slowly trudged over to the safe-house, head down and shoulders slumped.  
  
Trowa stepped out of the building, and waited silently for Quatre. When he was within reaching distance, he pulled his lover into his arms, then looked down at him questioningly. Quatre just shook his head, indicating that he didn't want to talk about it at the moment. Trowa nodded his understanding, and moved to sit down on the porch-swing. Quatre shifted slightly so that his face was buried in the folds of his love's sweater.  
  
Trowa's only response to the sudden wetness on his shirt was to gently stroke Quatre's hair and wait for the tears to run dry. 


End file.
